10 Amazing Albums Turning 50 In 2022
1. David Bowie - The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
If The Rolling Stones were on a hot streak circa 1972, David Bowie was about to go supernova. The singer had found his stride on the previous year’s Hunky Dory, but Ziggy Stardust took matters to the next level.
Ever the chameleon, Bowie found his first great character here in the titular intergalactic rockstar. The album is loosely conceptual, with Ziggy delivering a stark message about the apocalypse (the brilliant “Five Years”), delivering a quick backstory (“Starman”), and ultimately meeting a tragic end (“Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide”).
The album is replete with glam hits like the above but the (relatively) deeper cuts are often the highlight. “Moonage Daydream” is an underrated classic, with its nonsensical lyrics and ridiculously catchy instrumental outro. "Hang On to Yourself" previews the harder edge Bowie would adopt on Aladdin Sane, and Ron Davies’ “It Ain’t Easy” is an incongruous bluesy diversion with a great vocal.
Bowie would go on to change half a dozen times over the rest of the decade and you can argue your favourite period until the end of days, but Ziggy’s brash, glam goodness is one of his definitive and most joyful statements.